Insulated wall panels provide thermal insulation for residential homes and buildings. A wall panel's R-value reflects its ability to impede heat flow. The greater the ability to impede heat flow, the higher the R-value. Over the years, insulation standards have become stricter, requiring higher R-values and continuous insulation on the exterior side of insulated walls. The current market solutions to these stricter requirements are typically (1) pre-fabricated wall panels that incorporate insulation at the construction site, and (2) Structural Insulated Panels (SIPs).
The pre-fabricated wall panel that incorporates insulation at the construction site is the more widely adopted solution in the market. However, this solution requires a separate sub-contractor for on-site installation with fiberglass batting, which is known to have suboptimal R-values. Fiberglass is not an air barrier and allows for air intrusion, thus increasing the probability of condensation and mold growth within wall systems. Furthermore, additional material is necessary to finish the wall (e.g., Oriented Strand Panels (OSBs) and house wrap) and the overall construction process duration is extended, thereby increasing the risk of trade scheduling conflicts. Installing insulation onsite also leads to potential inconsistencies in insulation installation, performance, and usage.
The second solution, SIPs, also have several drawbacks. SIPs typically utilize expanded polystyrene (EPS) foam insulation sandwiched between two OSB panels, which only provide thermal performance of about R-4 per inch. Additionally, current SIPs are mainly used by smaller scale home builders with high levels of home customization.
More recently, insulated wall structures satisfying the strict industry insulation requirements that can be made without excessive material and labor costs have been proposed. According to one proposal, a foam wall structure includes a polyiso panel attached to at least a portion of a front frame surface, such that the polyiso panel and frame members define one or more voids within the frame; and a foam layer received within at least a portion of one of the voids within the frame, wherein the foam layer adheres to at least a portion of the polyiso panel.
While such foam wall structures can provide many benefits, it would be desirable to provide processes for producing such pre-fabricated foam wall structures that satisfy the strict industry insulation requirements and that have excellent racking strength without requiring the use of OSB panels or other panels constructed of materials that have a relatively high fastener pull out strength.
The present invention has been made in view of the foregoing desire.